Legal issues

The UK insurer met forecasts and hiked its dividend for 2015. But investors seem concerned that L&G’s position under the incoming Solvency II capital regime is relatively weak. It may be unfair, but as banks have found to their cost, capital adequacy tends to be a race to the top.

Context News

Legal & General on March 15 said 2015 operating profit rose 14 percent to 1.5 billion pounds, in line with expectations from analysts in a company-supplied poll.

Legal & General Investment Management, one of the biggest investors in the UK stock market, had assets under management of 746 billion pounds, a rise of 8 percent, following external net inflows of 37.7 billion.

The company said it had a solvency capital ratio under new European rules of 169 percent.

L&G said it would pay a total dividend of 13.4 pence per share, up 19 percent from 2014 and in line with forecasts.

L&G shares had fallen 5.6 percent to 230 pence by 1000 GMT on March 15.